Traditional uses of Kurdish medicinal plant Pistacia atlantica subsp. kurdica Zohary in Ranya, Southern Kurdistan

Abstract

Kurdistan is an area where famous for its biodiversity of plants particularly Southern Kurdistan. Traditional uses of the medicinal plants have not been well-studied or documented. Thus, the study of Kurdish ethnobotany may be crucial for understanding local plant uses. This is the first study and therefore, the objective of this investigation was to document traditional uses of Kurdish medicinal plant Pistacia atlantica subsp. kurdica Zohary in Ranya, Sulaymaniyah Province, Iraqi Kurdistan. An ethnobotanical filed study was conducted via semi-structured interviews of Twenty-five elderly informants to document traditional knowledge in Ranya during 2016. Data was analysed by comparison with the ethnobotanical literature of Kurdistan. The use-value (UVd) index was developed and used to calculate the citation of diseases only for single plant species. The results found that the tree has a long history of therapy for 20 different types of human diseases and problems. The high UVd value recorded for peptic and duodenal ulcers, dysentery, cholesterol which were (1, 0.48, 0.32) respectively, by eating gum in raw internally application. While the external application for skin problems was (0.68). The high UVd of Kurdish chewing gum in the form of chewing for clearing mouth, gum diseases, relieving abdominal pain were (1, 0.92, 0.92) respectively. The high UVd of fruits of this plant in the form of bead for removing depression and stress relief were (1, 0.92). A comparison with the previous Kurdish ethnobotanical studies showed new medicinal uses. Unripe fruits from this plant are used as a snack, while the ripe and unripe fruits are used to make various different foods as an ingredient. The beautiful dried fruits are used to make a bead. The current study found that this is one of the valuable wild tree plants that grown in Kurdistan naturally for many years. It has played a vital role in the health and commerce in this area through the millennia and has economic and ethnopharmacological activity since antiquity.